First, the feds said they found a West Side mini mart had been selling synthetic marijuana containing a substance used in rat poison.
Then, they said they caught its owner with a bag full of $280,000 cash.
Now Fouad Masoud, 48, of Justice, and two others have been charged with illegally selling the drug after someone reported “unusual bleeding” from the use of the product found at the King Mini Mart in the 1300 block of South Kedzie, according to a federal criminal complaint filed Monday.
The drug is often known as K2.
Also charged are Jamil Abdelrahman Jad Allah and Adil Khan Mohammed, both 44, who worked at the store.
The Illinois State Police tipped off the Chicago Police Department to Masoud’s store, records show. On March 26, an undercover CPD officer wore a video recording device while trying to buy K2 there.
“I don’t have the good stuff right now,” Mohammed allegedly told the
officer. “All I got is garbage.”
The officer paid $20 for a package labeled “Blue Giant” and another labeled “Crazy Monkey.” The next day, the officer paid $25 for three packages. Moments later, CPD’s vice control license section unit conducted a premise check.
Jad Allah led officers to an underground storage area where they found a bucket filled with 112 packages of synthetic marijuana weighing 1,920 grams. The officers closed the store.
CPD also submitted some of the purchased drugs to a DEA lab, where it was determined they contained “an unconfirmed detectable amount” of a substance frequently used in rat poison.
When he was arrested Sunday, Jad Allah told authorities the store had sold 80 packages of synthetic marijuana daily. The store would charge $10 for a 4-5 gram package and $20 for a 10-gram package.
The same day, officers approached Masoud as he left his townhouse in Justice carrying a large paper grocery bag and a paper box. Officers could see money inside.
“Whoa, how much money is that?” an officer asked.
Masoud told officers the bag contained $280,000, according to the complaint.
Inside his house, officers also allegedly found 2,900 grams of material in packages that appeared to contain synthetic marijuana.
